Raising happy and healthy children is the goal of every parent. You also want them to develop into caring and responsible adults. It’s a tough, yet fulfilling, job many parents learn along the way. Listed below are a few tips to help prepare you for the task at hand.
Emotional Development
No parent is perfect and there will be times you lose your composure. Unfortunately, children read your emotions as early as infancy. When you’re tense or frustrated, they pick up on it. This can cause your child stress at an early age. As a result, they develop unintended emotional insecurities. However, a child that feels love at home will pass that along through their adult years having long-term relationships. Maintain a calm and caring environment that includes expressions of love and admiration. Emotional and physical affection is necessary. Shower your kids with praise, hugs and don’t forget to say “I love you” often.
Good Nutrition Early
Nutritious foods early on will allow your little ones to develop strong bones, lean muscles and brainpower. A proper diet will also stabilize mood and thwart colds and viruses. Choose meals rich in essential vitamins and minerals, protein and complex carbohydrates and low in salt and sugar. The diet will provide enrichment to sustain optimal health, proper growth, and good mental health development.
Education
The goal of all parents is to raise smart kids who are also wonderful humans. You want them to become successful and pursue their dreams. Reading to children at an early age will help them develop necessary learning skills. It’s also about treating others with respect and having acceptance. When making friends, they don’t see color. They only see another kid that they like and want to hang around. COVID-19 makes it difficult to take kids to parks to play with friends. Using apps like Nextdoor will allow parents to meet other parents with children of the same age. On Nextdoor, racial profiling is not an issue. With strict guidelines, it provides a place where people of all ethnicities feel comfortable conversing with others. Another way to introduce different ethnicities to your child is through cooking. Having a discussion while preparing meals about what country the food derives from will teach them that the world comprises humans of different colors and cultures.
Raising Caring Children
Educating children isn’t only about brainpower. Teaching kids the importance of caring for others is an essential component to becoming a decent and well-respected adult. Having a genuine concern for others is something children learn through experiences at home. Toddlers and young children spend most of their time with their parents. The way you treat them will affect the way they treat others. When they feel secure and loved at home, they develop an attachment to you. This allows you as the parent to pass on your values and skills.
Principles such as justice, fairness, and respecting others teach children to do the right thing always, regardless of influential inappropriate behavior by their peers.
Responsible
For every action, there’s a positive or negative reaction. The younger you teach good habits of responsibility to your children, the easier it is to have them become a part of their being. Children as young as 2 or 3 years can pick up their toys and help with easy chores such as folding laundry, setting the table, and helping prepare meals. Small kids enjoy helping out. In the beginning, make it fun and a joint effort involving both parent and child. If they make mistakes, don’t criticize.
Demanding perfection will only turn them away and prevent future efforts from producing a positive outcome. As they grow older, expand their responsibilities to tasks like walking the dog, cleaning their room, and doing the dishes. Developing a sense of responsibility early will make it easier to get kids to do homework and complete projects without constant oversight. One way to reinforce your efforts is to practice self-responsibility as a parent.
Every kid is a blank canvas. Shaping them as responsible, caring and educated human beings starts in the home, with mom and dad. Strive to set a good example and you’ll be well on your way.
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